Phoenix Project Soar Participant On Her Way To Princeton University

Press release from the City of Phoenix:

July 2, 2020

Melanie Delgado Santacruz is a participant in the city’s ROSS for Education program - also known as Project SOAR (Student + Opportunities + Achievements = Results). She is a recent Phoenix Union Bioscience High School graduate.

She enrolled in Project SOAR in 2017 as a Sophomore with a 4.0 GPA, was a member of the National Honor Society and a participant with the Be A Leader Foundation. Be a Leader empowers students with leadership skills and support through high school.

Upon enrollment in the city’s program, Melanie was self-sufficient, however, she gained additional support from her Education Navigator, Bethany Neal, who was always available to provide advice on navigating the education system and case management services. Melanie completed her Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) in 2019 at the city’s College Depot.

Not only has Melanie completed high school, but she was accepted to Princeton University with a full-ride scholarship. She is one of 50 students chosen for the Jack Kent Cooke Scholarship and the only recipient from Arizona.

Melanie has started online classes with a summer bridge program for first-generation students and will officially start as a freshman at Princeton in the fall.

Melanie plans to major in engineering. She is very honored and excited to be attending Princeton.

CONGRATULATIONS Melanie!

This press release was produced by the City of Phoenix. The views expressed here are the author’s own.